Parents of remote Queensland students call for better distance education
Isolated parent advocates are descending on Brisbane this week to call for children in remote Queensland to get better education services – including funding for home tutors.
Isolated Children’s Parent Association provides distance education services for children across Queensland who are unable to attend face-to-face learning and its chief will be in Brisbane meeting key government representatives and stakeholders calling for fairer and more equitable access.
ICPA president Wendy Henning said more than 790 students and 530 families utilise educational facilities in Brisbane, Cairns, Charters Towers, Mt Isa, Longreach, Charleville and Emerald.
“For our families that use distance education, it is about making sure they are getting an equitable delivery of education model as to their counterparts who would be able to go to a mainstream face-to-face school receive,” Henning said.
“There are also families that have a transient life, whether they’re working in rural locations, in stock camps or delivering a service, then they need to be able to make sure that their children are able to be educated regardless of wherever they’re located.”
This week’s delegation planned to advocate for support of three key objectives – supporting distance education students and home tutors, immersive co-educational agricultural high school with boarding and building connections with new stakeholders – from November 10 to November 14.
Henning said ICPA QLD wanted improved recognition, along with more funding for practical support for home tutors including parents, governesses and supervisors. This will include calling for a Distance Education Supervisor Subsidy, consistent access to material, connectivity and technology, as well as ongoing support of distance education.
ICPA QLD will also continue to advocate for a state-run Agricultural High School to provide secondary education learning opportunities for rural students. The innovative model would include boarding and equitable access to education to strengthen workforce development in rural industries.
Another key mission for ICPA this week, was to build connections with new and existing stakeholders, including allied health and support services and educational programs, to strengthen awareness of the challenges faced by geographically isolated families.
“Because we are a member-based organisation, we’re furthering our motions and our policies that we have in place,” Henning said.
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“This week, in distance education, we’re making sure that the home supervisors and tutors in the classrooms have got the materials and support to enable the delivery of that education for those families, which can be complicated by connectivity and location issues.”
Building on motions raised at the 2025 State Conference in St George, ICPA says it will continue to raise awareness and advance discussions around access, affordability and equity for distance education.
“We’re making sure regardless of where those families call home or where their classroom is, that they can access their education,” Henning said.
